During the summer of 2013, I was given the opportunity to travel with a group of my peers while at the University of Michigan to assist with an ongoing design/build project in the rural town of Lesoit, Tanzania. Collectively we worked on creating a healthier and more efficient stove design for the Maasai people living in this district. Our goal was to reduce complications associated with their traditional 3 stone fires. We are culturally sensitive to the Maasai’s traditions, so our intent was Tanzania could work with the Maasai to implement as many stoves as possible during our three weeks into work together with the Maasai to integrate these stoves into their community. These new stoves featured a more modular design by utilizing soil bricks that the people of Lesoit had learned to make. Additionally, this new design allows for the stoves to be shorter and thus more similar to their traditional means of cooking We spent our winter semester refining this design so that we could implement it over the summer.
 

Individually, I worked more so with the design unit of the project creating visual aids to help explain the impact of our new stove design to a group of people who spoke little to no English. Battling language and cultural barriers, this task proved more difficult than anticipated with simple differences such as for them seeing blue as hot and red as cold. We had to take many cultural considerations into account when designing our posters in order to produce the most effective messaging possible. In addition, I also designed the branding imagery associated with the trip.          

 

Work done under the direction and with the assistance of professors Joseph Trumpey and

Hannah Smotrich for the EcoExplorers: Tanzania course at the Stamps School of Art & Design.  

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To Learn More About the Project, Check Out: ecoexplorers2014.tumblr.com